Brewers pitcher cited for drunken driving

Yovani Gallardo registered 0.22 percent in blood-alcohol test

The Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office reports that a star Brewers pitcher was pulled over Tuesday morning and cited for driving under the influence.

Spokeswoman Fran McLaughlin said in a statement that Yovani Gallardo, 27, was pulled over around 2:10 a.m. near the stadium interchange Tuesday because he was driving slowly and deviating lanes.

McLaughlin said that Gallardo failed a field sobriety test and registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.22 percent, which is nearly three times the legal driving limit of 0.08 percent.

Gallardo was cited with a first offense of operating while intoxicated, which carries a fine but no jail time.

Gallardo apologized Tuesday for what he called a bad decision.

“I made a mistake, and I’m sure I lost a lot of respect from a lot of fans, but (I) just want to apologize. Apologize to the fans, to my teammates, my family,” said Gallardo. “Especially to the people who look up to me and things like that. Obviously, it’s something I regret.”

The sheriff’s office said Gallardo was picked up after drinking at Leff’s Lucky Town in Wauwatosa. The bar’s owner said his employees remembered seeing Gallardo with a group that night.

“They all left together, and the thought was they were going to drive together, that they were going to have a designated driver,” said Chris Leffler, owner of Leff’s Lucky Town.

The Brewers organization released a statement Tuesday, stating: “We have been made aware of the situation with Yovani and we take this matter very seriously. We have expressed our disappointment to him and know he understands that behavior of this nature is of great concern to everyone in the organization. Yovani has acknowledged the seriousness of this incident and is taking full accountability for his actions.”

A native of Mexico, Gallardo represented the Brewers in the 2010 All-Star Game. He was a second-round pick of the Brewers in the 2004 draft and made his major league debut in 2007.

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